Travel companies have dozens of trade organizations representing their best interests in the marketplace and lobbying on behalf of airlines, cruise lines, hoteliers, car rental firms, theme parks and other sellers of travel products.

So who does the traveling public have? Well, there are nonprofits such as Consumers Union, and ombudsmen such as USA TODAY's Traveler's Aide. And then there's the Better Business Bureau, which is 102 years old and offers a vision statement of "an ethical marketplace where buyers and sellers can trust each other."

The nonprofit BBB rates thousands of corporations, including hundreds of U.S.-based and foreign-based travel companies. This rating system is not without its faults. But in many cases, you can benefit from the unfortunate experiences of your fellow travelers, and plan better accordingly.

Behind the ratings

The BBB's site provides a wealth of information, with thousands of entries for travel companies, on both the corporate and local levels. In other words, you can analyze a large chain like Marriott, or individual properties at specific airports. And digging into each of these files provides detailed information on how travel companies have treated customers, as well as how they have responded to consumer complaints.

The need for unbiased data that can help consumers make better travel purchases is critical. For airline passengers, the U.S. Department of Transportation provides the monthly Air Travel Consumer Report, which provides detailed rankings of airlines in several categories, including consumer complaints. And as I pointed out here in 2011, there are a few federal agencies that provide limited information on cruise lines that sail into and out of the United States.

For those purchasing other travel products, finding out more about certain companies can be a real challenge. There is no shortage of user-generated rating sites, though many are plagued by 1) a low statistical sampling and 2) questions about ratings that could be biased for or against a given company. That's why the BBB can be vital, since it offers ratings of corporations you may not find anywhere else.

However, sometimes the guards need guarding. In 2010, for example, media reports detailed shady practices at the BBB's Los Angeles chapter, which was accused of giving A+ ratings to businesses that paid accreditation fees.

Employing the data

The BBB has compiled tons of consumer information on the travel industry, and much of it can be quite helpful. But it's important to consider how best to navigate this online world:

• Local focus. The organization maintains dozens of individual sites nationwide, sub-divided by state and even localities (six in California alone). These local sites usually work best when researching individual hotel properties, resorts, travel agency branches, car rental offices, theme parks and other single venues.

• Big picture views. There also is a national site, which is best for providing big-picture views of airlines, cruise lines and other travel corporations.

• Accreditation. Despite the recent scandal, the accreditation process does serve a purpose, particularly when consumers want to find out more about smaller, unfamiliar companies, such as travel agencies, tour operators or independent hotel properties. The Accreditation Standards include minimum requirements for length of operation, licensing, bonding, etc.

• Alerts. Even if you're familiar with a travel company, these notices can provide key information. For example, a bold, red, underlined entry on American Airlines' page states the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization in 2011 and provides advice for consumers with monetary claims. And then there is the lengthy alert for Spirit Airlines, which details numerous consumer complaints and BBB correspondence.

• Customer reviews. As stated above, customer reviews can be dicey, since bias questions arise. However, the BBB has the statistical advantage of very large samplings, as well as the proven track record of following up on complaints. In fact, the BBB promises to forward consumer complaints to companies within two business days.

How travel companies stack up

Digging down into the data yields surprising results when you compare and contrast travel companies. Consider the differences among ratings for these domestic airlines:

Many frequent fliers would no doubt question a system that would rate Allegiant A+ and US Airways F. The explanation is complex, and reflects the number of complaints filed, the type of complaints filed, the company's response to those complaints, and many other factors. In fact, the BBB provides details on the 16 separate factors that comprise the rating.

In the case of US Airways, that failing grade is derived from 1,517 complaints, including 266 unresolved and 2 deemed "serious," along with 84 failures to respond. In addition, the airline has garnered 41 customer reviews, and all 41 are Negative experiences, with no Positive or Neutral experiences.

Other sectors of the travel industry offer similarly divergent results among well-known brands. Consider the ratings for the two largest U.S. car rental firms:

• Avis: A+• Hertz: F

The primary reason for that terrible Hertz rating is that "the company generally takes longer than expected to respond to complaints," resulting in 104 unresolved complaints and 45 complaints currently open. Certainly this is a good thing for consumers to know; but in fairness, F seems harsh.

Pros and cons

For an organization dedicated to assisting consumers, many users will find the BBB site surprisingly unfriendly to navigate. The functionality that allows either national or local searches can in fact be a drawback -- if you are not sure where a corporation is headquartered, for example, you may be confused by the multiple listings under the same company name. The Hertz Corporation is based in Park Ridge, N.J., but its nationwide rating is listed under a P.O. box in Oklahoma City; this may make sense internally within the BBB, but it's quite a confusing system for a consumer to decipher.

Another concern is that weighting system that comprises the BBB's critical rankings. These ratings can be heavily skewed by factors that won't concern many travelers, resulting in extreme grades; in other words, there are many As and many Fs, and few ratings in between. My suggestion: don't give in to sticker shock over a good or bad rating, but instead read through the detailed summaries of how and why a company received the grade it did. This will provide much more insight than a simple A or F.

The bottom line? The BBB can provide consumers with vital information, and for some sectors of the travel industry -- such as cruise lines, hotels and car rental firms -- this information can be extremely difficult if not impossible to find anywhere else. If you're about to book with a company and you have questions, doubts, or concerns, visiting the BBB site can offer the perspective of those who have traveled before you.

Bill McGee, a contributing editor to Consumer Reports and the former editor of Consumer Reports Travel Letter, is an FAA-licensed aircraft dispatcher who worked in airline operations and management for several years. Tell him what you think of his latest column by sending him an e-mail at travel@usatoday.com. Include your name, hometown and daytime phone number, and he may use your feedback in a future column.